Based on the evidence, Andy felt there was a very strong case for charging Norman Gentle with the murder. After all, he was the spurned lover. From what they could tell, about to be let go in favour of a new and much younger model. Just like his own current situation at home. And Norman had argued with the victim the previous day and it was entirely possible he stood to be the beneficiary in the will that could be worth millions.
He probably thought he’d just walk away without but hadn’t reckoned on being recognised by the antiques dealer and his fake identity being discovered.
All they needed to do was find the blood stained clothing or missing painting with Norman’s fingerprints all over it. They’d done a complete search but there was no sign. They just needed to figure out how Norman had got these items out of the hotel. It was only a matter of time.
DCI Stone decided to call DI Eden Gold into his office to get his opinion.
“Eden. What do you think? Is there enough evidence to charge Norman Gentle with the murder?”
“I'm not sure, Andy. Although it all seems to point to him, there's just something in my gut that tells me we should keep looking.”
“I understand what you’re saying but I'm getting a lot of pressure from upstairs about this one. I need to tell them something. I’ve only got a few hours before I either charge him or release him. I've forwarded the papers to the CPS and I’m waiting for them to get back to me. I hear what you say but based on what we have I think it's likely they will decide to go ahead and from what I can see he's our man. I hate to overrule you on this one but I really think it’s an open and shut case.”
“You know I’ll back you all the way. I fully understand where you’re coming from. But off the record I’ve been a bit worried about you recently. Are you feeling okay? I've noticed you’ve been a bit off colour the past few days. Are you coming down with something?”
Andy opened his mouth and looked as if he was about to tell Eden something but then thought better of it.
“No. Everything is fine. Maybe a bit of a headache and in need of a holiday but you know what it's like. No chance with a big case like this going on. We just need a lucky break. Then we’ve got the case all wrapped up.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Following the decision by DCI Andy Stone to charge Norman Gentle with the murder of his live-in lover, Eden Gold had been assigned to the case of schoolteacher Barry Turner, who was still unconscious in hospital following the head injuries he had received during the one-sided attack at the Five Bells pub.
A police informant had come forward saying he had overheard someone boasting and laughing about the incident in a pub called the Jolly Brewers.
The informant had named someone who was well-known to Trentbridge police. But every time they tried to get close he seemed to elude them. Kevin O’Connor. A name to strike fear into the heart of any local police officer.
He and wife, Sadie, and their two sons, Tyson and Lennox, had been a pain from the day they moved to Trentbridge over twelve years earlier. Fen Road was located on the edge of Pickstone and known locally for the traveller community who managed to reign mayhem over all the people unfortunate enough to live nearby.
Twenty years back, the police controlled the area with an iron rod but this had eroded as the powers that oversee the police force became more liberal. It was an area most police officers would hesitate to visit, unless they really had to.
Kevin and his two sons certainly liked a drink ... or three. Most of the local pubs had at one time or another tried to ban him but no one had the bottle to say no to Kevin. Three bouncers who had stood up to him in the past had all ended up in hospital needing surgery. So he was left to drink in the hope he would get bored and move on to another pub.
It was not only bar staff and bouncers who gave Kevin a wide berth. Most patrol cars knew Kevin’s cars and would suddenly get an emergency call somewhere else if they happened to see him driving home. The only time he was likely to get stopped was if he was driving a vehicle not flagged up as belonging to him and usually found to be on the stolen vehicles list. The word was, if you wanted to arrive home with all your teeth, police officer or not, you didn’t get involved with the O’Connor’s.
Recently an expensive RV vehicle worth over £70,000 had gone missing from the driveway of a house in another part of Trentbridge. It had been fitted with a tracker device that showed it was located at the back of the Two Oaks caravan site on Fen Road but uniformed police had refused to enter the site.
The local newspaper put the story on the front page and caused a stink about the incident but all they got was a statement from the local chief constable saying it was a difficult situation.
Kevin O’Connor was the man the police suspected of taking the vehicle and also behind other crimes including a string of armed raids
